Cornered repeatedly by Opposition Congress and BJP members, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday expressed deep concern in the State Assembly over the issue of removal of stoles from women and girls at a meeting addressed by him in Sundargarh on Sunday.
“I strongly share the concern of the august House on the issue of security personnel removing black ‘Odhani’ of girls in a Government programme in Sundergarh district on December 4,” Patnaik told the House.
He said he was personally shocked when he came to know this incident and called the Home Secretary and the DGP and warned against such conduct which denigrates human dignity and warned against repetition of such incidence.
“The DGP has been asked to conduct an inquiry in to the matter and take appropriate action on the defaulting security personnel. Inspector General of Police, Western Range, Rourkela, is already enquiring into the incident,” the Chief Minister said, adding, “My government is sensitive and fully committed towards empowerment and preserving the dignity of women. I am also against causing inconvenience to people while enforcing security protocol and had earlier directed police several times in this regard.”
The Chief Minister said this after Opposition Chief Whip Tara Prasad Bahinipati (Congress) raised the issue again during the Zero Hour demanding an apology from him. Soon after, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Bikram Keshari Arukh said the CM would make a stamen before the lunch hour.
Though Congress members waited for the CM to make a statement, BJP member Radharani Panda wanted to say something else akin to the Sundargarh incidence. However, Speaker Niranjan Pujari didn’t allow her to speak.
Dissatisfied at this, BJP members trouped into the Well of the House and shouted slogans against the Government and the CM. As they continued doing this, the Speaker adjourned the House frequently for five, 10 and 20 minutes. Finally, the Chief Minister kept his reply amid shouting by BJP members.
Outside the House, Radharani Panda said Sundargarh-like incidences had also taken place in Bargarh and Brajrajnagar. But the CM did not utter a single word about those incidences in his statement.
The House functioned normally in the afternoon hours during which two motions, one on the Japanese Encephalitis deaths and another on the KBK development issue, were discussed.
Meanwhile, it was learnt that a PIl was filed in the Orissa High Court o Wednesday over the stole removal issue though it was yet to be enlisted.